Can't Be Just Your Memory
by Cherry Blossom Ino
Summary: It has be five years since her death, and he still hasn't gotten over her. Nothing matters to him anymore now that she's gone. Or is she? Slowly the past seems to be revealing new turns and secrets as a new nin appears, who looks just like Ino. ShikaIno


**Can't Be Just Your Memory**_**: A ShikaIno Fanfiction **_

**By: CherryBlossomIno**

**I do not own any anime, I do not own Naruto. Also I do not own the song Memory by Sugarcult. I wish I did though…**

Code;;

"Lala" speech

"_Lala"_ thought

_Huge paragraph like this_ memory

**Chapter 1:**

_**Lost love one**_

* * *

_This may never start.  
We could fall apart.  
And I'd be your memory._

* * *

"_You know… you look pretty good in the vest! Protect my body, Shikamaru! You lazy bum, get up we have a mission! I am not troublesome, stop calling me that! No wonder you don't have a girlfriend, you're so lazy! I feel sorry for whoever is going to be on your team…"_ His eyes were closed and mind at rest, he began to hear the familiar cocky, vain, yet lovely voice of his blonde teammate playing in his head like a broken record.

Oddly for once in his life he didn't really find it annoying. Actually he was kind of enjoying it; thus, explaining the small grin on his lips, which he had hidden from the world for years.

This boy was Nara Shikamaru. He was known as many things: Konoha's savoir, the genius strategist, and other memorable titles. To the public he seemed perfect, amazing, and fool-proof. Some even agreed that he was suited to be the next Hokage. Though Shikamaru though much differently of himself. He thought and knew for a fact that he was a failure, an idiot, and useless. Normally he wasn't this hard on himself, but now was different. He had lost two people dear to him.

First was his sensei, Asuma. Killed on a mission, Shikamaru wasn't able to sleep or think straight until he had gotten revenge. And he did so, killing the killer. Even though the man is dead, he was never forgotten. Almost every week or two Shikamaru would smoke as a way to remind him of his favorite teacher. Whenever the poison toxin would float around him, he felt Asuma with him. Asuma Though this was just a figment of Shikamaru's imagination, it made him feel stronger. He loved Asuma in a father-son way.

But his true feeling for the second lost one wasn't that simple to explain. Actually almost everyday he tried to think of a way to explain it. It never came out right. When he tried to talk about Chouji about the chubby ninja would just chuckle, "Because you love her, idiot!" But then the conversation would go silent as both of the males remembered she was gone. Shikamaru knew he loved her, but never in a love-relationship kind of way. He always assumed it was just a friendship thing, like their fathers. She was just a troublesome woman. But whenever she trusted him to protect her body or just poke fun at him, he always felt a little warm inside. Obviously that meant nothing… she was just a troublesome woman after all.

The second lost love was Yamanaka Ino, his teammate.

Ino was loud, outgoing, bossy, annoying, and so much more. Like he stated before, Ino was just troublesome. She always knew the right words to ruin his day or make it the best day ever. He never really could really imagine life with out her there bossing everyone around. He never realized how much he'd miss her till she was gone. Shikamaru also decided that it was his fault she was gone. The bombshell died on a mission he was leading.

It seemed like such a simple mission too… with a group of five shinobi lead by him they set off into the grass country to retrieve some scrolls that were stolen from Konoha. Ino was in that group since the hokage recommended her since her mind jutsus could help find the location of the scrolls and she'd also work as a medic nin. Too bad this medic nin couldn't save her own life.

Everything was alright at first. That was until enemy nins came to attack the party. It was a tough fight and Shikamaru ordered Ino to go help the second group since everyone was spilt up into two. How it happened… Shikamaru does and did not know. Only when he finished off his guy he ran over to check on the others. He found Ino dead on the ground with five kunai hitting her at five different major organs. She had no pulse, and Shikamaru felt like a part of him was dying. Before he could do anything to her body a jutsu came she blasted him away from his teammate's body. He never forgot what that grass nin yelled to him that day. "Aww, is you're little blondie dead? Then a guess you won't mind me keeping her, I have a collection of my victims!" He laughed evilly and Shikamaru felt a jolt of pain run through his body. On that note the ninja grabbed Ino's body and him and his team disappeared into the night.

Shikamaru felt sick and powerless. He could have done so many things at the moment to get her back. His body was in shock from thinking Ino died that he couldn't move. In the end the mission was a failure and he had lost one very important nin. From that day on he would always be haunted by her. The first year he always saw her everywhere. It was even worse when he and Chouji went out to eat. Shikamaru always imagined Ino smirking in the seat across from him.

It had been five years from that day, and he still hasn't gotten over it.

The Nara has refused more and more missions. He spent most of his days sleeping and smoking. Barely had he gone out to see his friends. Some people thought he died. But his close friends knew that he did die. Yes, his mind and body were still on earth. Though His heart had died long ago… which was probably the reason he didn't have a girlfriend anymore.

* * *

_One year ago Shikamaru was sitting on his couch with a blonde cuddling right besides him as they watched TV. The blonde was Temari, a kunoichi from Suna. They had been in a relationship for around seven years now. They started dating when they were younger and went through many ups and downs. Currently they were at a down, trying to make this work out. _

"_Hey, crybaby! Nothing interesting is on… so why don't we have a little bit of fun…" Temari purred seductively as she turned off the TV and turned toward Shika. She pushed him down and then kissed him passionately on the lips. Shikamaru tried to kiss back, but something was wrong. This, the kiss, didn't feel right. Temari quickly broke the kiss and glared down at the lazy boy below her. "Shikamaru… What the hell is wrong with you? I know you can kiss better than that!" She exclaimed._

_Shikamaru let out a sigh then grunted, "I'm just not in the mood right now, Temari."_

"_You weren't in the mood for the past hundred times! We have been dating for years now. People keep on coming up to me asking when our weeding date is. But how am I going to answer when my 'future-husband' doesn't even want to kiss me?!"_

"_Temari… I'm sorry… just… I've been thinking a lot lately…" _

"_No! No! NO! You aren't thinking about what her again, are you?!" Temari snapped. This was getting her very pissed off. Her anger only grew more as Shikamaru nodded weakly. "It has been four years, Shikamaru! F-O-U-R! Will you just get over it! Sure… I understand she was your teammate and all, but you have to understand she's in a better place now. She wouldn't want you to be worrying about-"_

_Shikamaru interrupted, "But it's MY fault! If I just… she wouldn't be dead…" Shikamaru eyes saddened as he pushed Temari off of him._

"_What would be different right now, if she was here? Wasn't she happy you finally got a girlfriend? She gave you those roses for our first date, remember?" Temari questioned, her fist tightening. She had a theory in her head… but she hoped to God it wasn't right._

"_Probably not… this is so troublesome. I'm not really sure, if things would be different…Just…I really wish she was here…with me…" His voice faded as he found himself in that situation again. He couldn't explain why he missed her so much. He had a reason for Asuma, but not Ino. He always felt there was something more he didn't mention. That's why she had been on his mind so long._

_His thoughts were stopped as he heard the sound of muffled cries besides him. No, Shikamaru couldn't believe it. His tough girlfriend never cried. He must have been hearing things. Slowly his head turned to see Temari crying, tears streaming down her face. Shikamaru lifted his hand to whip the tears off her checks, but she just slapped his hand away. "Temari… why are you crying?" Shikamaru asked worriedly. _

_After a few sniffles Shikamaru waited for his answer. For a while it never came, Temari just sat there crying. Minutes later she stood up in front of him. "I-I can't be-believe thi-this…" Temari stuttered, more tears flowing._

"_Temari…"_

"_S-Shikamaru… I figured it out. She's the reason why you won't kiss me anymore. She's the reason you keep spacing out every time I talk to you… She's the reason you don't love me!" Temari cried. Shikamaru stayed silent as billion of thoughts rand through his head. First one was Temari was crazy and had no idea what she was talking about. His second thoughts began to wonder if she was right. _

_The Suna girl stormed over to the door, knocking down any books, tables, or vases that got in her way. Her hand on the door she turned to look at him one last time. "I can't believe a dead girl stole my boyfriend away from me…" Without giving Shikamaru anytime to argue, she slammed the door and ran away. What a way to end a relationship…_

_For months after the breakup Shikamaru had tried to contact Temari. He even traveled all the way back to Suna. But nothing could change it. Temari refused to even look at his face. When Temari had to come the next year for Exams she totally ignored the lazy nin and told the Hokage that she didn't need a tour guide. Shikamaru even spotted her flirting with a few boys in front of him. It did hurt, but she was the one that ended it. _

* * *

His daydream of that troublesome breakup was ended as he felt some one shaking his shoulders. He opened his eyes to see a pink haired kunoichi in front of him. He frowned slightly; Sakura was _Ino's_ best friend. "What do you want?" He asked boredly, hoping she'd go away quickly so he could get back to relaxing.

In response Sakura shook her head slightly and crossed her arms. "Heh… I still can't imagine how someone like you became a jounin," she chuckled jokingly. She smiled sweetly at him, but he continued to frown.

"What do you want, Sakura?" He asked again, glaring at her a little.

Sakura gulped slightly at the glare. She never saw Shikamaru in such a pissed off mood, he usually just slept. "Hokage-sama wants to see you," she stated in a professional voice. "Now," she added sternly. Sakura didn't really enjoy sounding like this, but she tried being sweet and it wasn't working.

"What the hell does that troublesome woman want," Shikamaru yawned, stretching his arms behind his head. Still he stayed in his stop looking up at the clouds above him.

"It's a mission, obviously. But she's going to be outrage if you're late so get your ass off the ground and get moving! Sadly for me I'm going to have to deal with her emotions after your little chat so this affects me. I do not want seven broken bones after my training, because a certain lazy bum didn't get her in a good mood!" Sakura exclaimed, grabbing Shikamaru's arm and violently pulling him up. After a few grumbles from Shikamaru, Sakura pushed him all the way to the Hokage's office. _FUN _

* * *

Shikamaru knew something bad was going to happen as the door to the office was left open just for him. As he slowly walked in the first thing he saw was Tsunade, the current Hokage, sitting at her desk with a serious look on her face. _"At least she's not drunk," _Shikamaru thought thankfully.

"Do you know why you're here, Shikamaru?" the Hokage asked, opening a folder then flipping through a couple of pages. Her brown eyes looked up, waiting for his reply.

"Because you're giving me a troublesome mission…" Shikamaru answered with a yawn. He was one of the few who actually dared to not show the most respect towards her. But he never did to anyone really… not even his mother.

"Yes yet no… You can consider it a mission if you want. You're going to be the tour guide to a foreign nin who traveled here to confirm the peace treaty between our countries," Tsunade informed him. "You worked well last time you can to guide someone around the village… so…"

"_That's only because Temari forced me to give her a kiss before she went back home…baka..."_ Shikamaru added mentally, not daring to say that much out loud. "Who is he?" Shikamaru asked, sounding unpleased to hopefully hint he didn't want to do this.

"It's a she, Shikamaru. And her name is Sachi, probably a code name since no last name was given. She'll be staying for however long the treaty process lasted. The last one took around a month… But she's from the Grass Village, and so far they seem pretty stubborn to me," she explain, taking a sip of the sake on her desk.

Shikamaru froze for a second, trying to believe she didn't say what he just heard. "Did you just say she's from the Grass village?" He asked uneasily.

"Yes. Problem?"

"Hell yes! I refuse!" He shouted very un-Shikamaru like. Tsunade blinked confusedly at him. Arching her brow she shot him an expression asking why he was doing so. After a breath to calm himself down he looked back at the lady. "Just… that village… they-"

"One of the ninjas killed your teammate, Yamanaka Ino. I know, Shikamaru. She was one of my students… studying right under Sakura. I know she was important to you, but this treaty is of great importance. I fear a war is coming soon… and Konoha needs as much help as it can get," she interrupted in a cheerless voice. After taking another slip of sake she went on, "But since they have done so much to harm us in the past, I do not completely trust them. This is where you come in. Keep an eye on this "Sachi"… if she is doing anything suspicious don't be afraid to lock her up in the jail right away. I trust that you'll complete the mission given to you… so will you help Konoha?"

With that little speech it was hard to say no. He liked the part about locking her up if she did anything bad. That would be a good way to get some revenge. "Whatever…" Shikamaru sighed.

With that said Tsunade smiled hopefully. "You're a good kid, Shikamaru. You'll meet Sachi tomorrow morning at nine at the gates, be early. Now you may go," she dismissed him.

* * *

As the Hokage order Shikamaru waited (half-asleep) for the visitor to arrive. His brown eyes turned lazily to one of the clocks hanging from a store near by. It read 9:30. That witch was late. Secretly he wished that somehow she got randomly attacked then died. Cruel, but he prayed that would happen.

With a couple of prayers and a few snores later another thirty minutes flew by. Now Shikamaru was basically fast asleep, leaning against the wall of a building to prevent his body from falling.

"Hey, you, lazy ass! Are you Nara-san?" asked a female voice that sound way to familiar. It was strong, cocky, and loud. Yes, many women now-a-days sound like this, but this was different from the rest. This voice sounded like Ino. Automatically his eyes shot open. He blinked in awe at first as he looked at the female in front of him.

At first he saw Ino, a blink later Ino transformed into another girl. The new girl was a fair four inches shorter then him and had pale creamy skin. Her body was a lithe thin hourglass shape wearing low cut clothing to show off said figure. She had long pin straight brown hair that flowed gracefully down to five inches above her butt. But only one quality really stayed the same between Ino and the new girl, it was her eyes. Icy blue, pure and cold, just like his teammates'. Never did he see some one with eyes so similar to Ino's. He couldn't but let her name stutter out of his lips, "I-Ino?"

The new girl froze for a minute her icy eyes widening. By the look on her face Shikamaru could tell some nerve wracking thoughts were rushing through her head. "Ahh… I'm sorry but my name isn't Ino. I guess you're not the person I was looking for…" The girl mumbled as she looked away, embarrassed. She felt pretty guilty for waking up a random stranger who was sleeping in the streets.

Finally realizing this person was not Ino, his head came back to earth. "Oh sorry, for a second I thought you were this girl I knew," Shikamaru explained with a small yawn at the end. The girl raised her brow suspiciously for a moment and waited for him to go on. "I'm Nara Shikamaru, your guide. You're Sachi, no? Well I can tell your troublesome already, you made me wait an extra hour," Shikamaru stated in his normal bored tone.

Sachi paused for a moment before replying again. "Yes I am…. Nani? Troublesome?! And I thought you Konoha shinobi were weak friendly people. You may still be weak but you sure aren't friendly!" She snapped lightly as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Everything is troublesome to me, so get use to it." Already Shikamaru knew this mission was going to be a pain in the ass. This girl seemed sly and seductive, he could tell by her clothing. Truly troublesome this was going to be.

The female sighed as she ran fingers through a piece of her soft long hair. "Well can you show me my room now? I tired and need some beauty rest," she stated softly, letting out a light yawn. He wasn't sure if she was actually tired or mocking his laziness.

"Wait… didn't you get a room at one of the hotels here or something?" Shikamaru asked.

Sachi's pout slowly turn into a sly grin. Her face was easy to read. It said, 'I know something you don't know'. Taking a few steps closer to him, she looked up at him and smirked. "Didn't you know? Your Hokage told me that you had an extra room in your house for me to stay. So lead the way!" She giggled excitedly, eager to see her new room.

"Ugh… troublesome…"

* * *

**Who is this "Sachi"? Why is she so similar to Ino? And what possible drama will start as this new troublesome visit inhabits the Nara house?**

**Fine out next chapter- Rate and Review!**


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